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Show Mayor Miller Reviews History Of City Water System In Letter Realizing the part that the pioneers pio-neers took in the bringing of water to St. George, Mayor Albert E. Miller has given a brief outline of the work that was done and those who took part in its accomplishment. accom-plishment. The following information inform-ation was presented to the State PWA office at the request of R. A. Hart, state director. It is used in connection with the celebration planned next Wednesday in honor of the completion of the St. George water system. Following is part of the letter written by Mayor Miller: "Seventy-five years ago when the pioneer settlers of this community com-munity commenced the settling of this place they immediately found that they were handicapped by an insufficient water supply. Not for culinary water but for a sufficient suffici-ent amount to cultivate their gardens gar-dens and a supply to run down the curb line to grow shade trees to beautify their streets. An additional ad-ditional supply was found at the Pine Valley mountains some eighteen eight-een miles away. To secure this water it would be necessary to divert di-vert it from one watershed to another an-other over high ridges and across deep canyons in a direction opposite oppo-site to its natural course. An et-'ort et-'ort was made in the lSOOs but the task was too great. "In the 1880's another effort was made, backed by the City Treasury Treas-ury by increasing an indebtedness. A certain amount of success resulted resul-ted from this attempt, still the effort ef-fort to bring the water through the canal system was a failure owing ow-ing to the stretches of gypsum formations into which the water disappeared. The efforts of the citizens and City resulted in failure fail-ure to secure the needed water. "Some ten years later in the 1890's another diversion was made between the first, or upper place and the second or lower place. A canal was dug some four miles on steep side hills and across the top of high ridges bringing it to where it would flow down steep grades through deep canyons into St. George City. This canal system brought in a great amount of debris and silt making the pure mountain water a poluted stream which required a settling pool and a chlorinating plant which has been very unsatisfactory. Through the canal system about two thirds of the water was lost, leaving us still with a shortage for homes and gardens about three-fourths of of the St. George valley with an inadequate water supply. "It has been evident for years (Continued on page three) Water System History (Continued from first page) to meet our requirements this water would have to be piped, but where was the necessary finance to come from. "Thirty-five thousand dollars in bonds were issued in 1921 and used for piping, again in 1931, $25,-000.00 $25,-000.00 of indebtedness was incurred incur-red for additional piping. We had reached our limit until the Administration Admin-istration of Public Works came to our rescue and financed, trdughh the revenue of our water system department, the issuing of $102,-000.00 $102,-000.00 of bonds and by a grant of approximately $43,000.00 whereby a pipeline eighteen miles long has been layed, bringing the water from the mountain to our water system as pure as it is at its source. Therefore, you can realize the joy it gives us in expressing our appreciation to your office for your cooperation, for that of the Denver office and also from Washington. Wash-ington. The vision of progress as viewed by the pioneers and the labors of all the administrative officers of-ficers of St. George City is realized real-ized in the completion of this project. proj-ect. "Opportunity is made for many new homes in St. George City." |